A few months later…

Karlheinz sat in a bit of a daze, flipping aimlessly through the stacks of books that were piled upon his desk.

Sampson was on the opposite end of the room, taking a bite of an apple, flipping through a book of his own.

Suddenly, Karlheinz closed his book, looking directly at Sampson, upon which the swordsman raised his brow, silently giving the go-ahead to speak.

"Beatrix is a rather comely woman." Karlheinz said, stating the fact.

Sampson took a conscious bite of his apple, "I don't think there's a man who'd deny it."

"She doesn't smile much," Karlheinz spoke as though he were still thinking it through, "Why do you think that is?"

"I couldn't say, My Lord," Sampson answered, "But it makes it all the more beautiful when she does."

"Yes," Karlheinz nodded, pen held absently between his fingers, "Yes there's—a bit of a glow to her when she does, don't you think?"

"I'm sure you're not the only one who thinks as such."

"We've just received some tea from Japan. Sampson, you don't think—perhaps she'd care for some?"

Sampson couldn't help the grin that spread his lips, unable to help but tease, "What a grand idea, my lord. I'm sure a gathering would be great for everyone's spirits."

"Ah," Karlheinz faltered, trying to find a way out, "Well, yes, gatherings are always good for such things…" he struggled, searching for the proper words.

"Karlheinz," Sampson smirked, sitting on the edge of the desk and taking another bite of the apple, "Surely you didn't mean to invite the lady unattended? What a scandal that might cause—"

"No!" Karlheinz was quick to refute it, "Never anything like that—I wouldn't—" he paused for a moment, "What of you and Henrietta? I could invite her as well!"

Sampson scoffed, tossing the apple core away, "The wind may blow at the mountain but the mountain will not move. Or so the saying goes."

Even Karlheinz chuckled at that, "Are you sure you're not both the wind?"

Sampson raised a brow, "How so?"

"Because you both cause such a whirlwind when you're together. I don't think I've ever seen anything so amusing."

"Amusing for us both though I'm afraid it also makes me incredibly frustrated."

Karlheinz continued to chuckle, "Very well, then. It's settled. I shall invite them both for tea."

"Am I to be in attendance as well?"

"Of course!" Karlheinz said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, "Should you ever hope to have her as your wife then you must prove to her how devoted you are, Charles!"

A dry laugh parted Sampson's lips, "Devotion is hardly enough for a woman like her."

Karlheinz tapped his stationary with his pen, grinning, "I shall invite her. Take advantage of my good will."

"Much obliged, my lord," Sampson grinned again, "I must say I'm rather impressed."

"Oh?" Karlheinz said absently, already beginning on his letter.

"You seem to have forgotten the human girl rather easily."

His pen stopped mid-word, his eyes diverting off the page, before returning back. Karlheinz shook his head, "I will not forgive betrayal. And what that woman did was betrayal."

"And Richter?" Sampson leered, "What of him?"

"Richter is my brother," Karlheinz said strictly, "That is the only thing that spared him."

"Brothers betray each other every day—"

"I will not turn my back on blood," Karlheinz looked up, eyes cutting right through Sampson, "In the end it's all one has."

A respectful nod was all Sampson said in response. Inwardly, he grinned to himself. Perhaps the little prince was learning to grow up after all.

…

Henrietta was cackling, scuttling around the parlor to keep the letter out of Beatrix's reach, "…the greatest of honors, if a lady as beautiful as you could join me for tea—I'm sure he'd like to drink a lot more than tea—ha! Beatrix! Perhaps you could offer him your blood—"

"Henrietta!" Beatrix snapped, "You should know better than to take what isn't yours—"

"But it's addressed to me as well, is it not?" She cackled again, dodging Beatrix's attempt to grab her, pulling a chair out in an attempt to deter her, "My family has recently received a shipment from the human land of Japan," she continued, reading off the letter, "I do so wish to see Japan one day. Perhaps we could travel there together—" she scoffed, bursting into laughter all over again, "Oh this is so painfully Karlheinz—"

"Henrietta—!"

"And," Henrietta was panting, dodging furniture and trying to put as many in Beatrix's path as possible, "Should it please the Lady Humbert, her presence has been requested as well—I wonder by who—" she gagged, making a face, "She might be pleased to know—oh do tell me Lord Karlheinz, what might please me—that Sir Sampson finds her company most—" she stopped, choking on her own tongue, completely unable to finish the last lines out loud, "That bastard!"

At last, Beatrix got hold of the letter, skimming it quickly up until the very last few lines, where Karlheinz's elegant penmanship was replaced with something that was equally flamboyant, but so obviously not belonging to that of the young lord.

"Oh my," Beatrix inhaled, "That's rather…explicit—"

"Burn it," Henrietta demanded, snatching the letter, "How dare he interfere with another's letter—"

"Henrietta," Beatrix compelled her to sit down, "Don't you think it's time you finally accept his courtship? You'd never have to worry about anything ever again—"

"I will not become a second wife Beatrix! How many times must I tell you? Even if that weren't the case I'd never marry him! That man is so infuriating I can't stand even the sight of him—"

"But you do," Beatrix said quietly, knowingly. "In fact I'd say you two get along rather well—"

"Don't insult me! That man—" she clenched her fist, before sighing, sinking down onto the couch next to Beatrix. She swallowed thickly, her voice becoming soft, "You know I can't."

"Henrietta…"

"Don't," she shook her head, "You're my only friend, and perhaps the only person in this pitiful spot of hell that I care for, but you won't ever understand someone like me, Beatrix. Even now, look at you," she motioned at the letter, "Off to become Queen the of everything."

Beatrix stayed silent, looking at her friend with downcast eyes.

"I don't need to be pitied," Henrietta said indignantly.

"No, I wouldn't—"

"I will find my husband," Henrietta said suddenly, with a large smile on her face, taking Beatrix's hands into her own, "I will be the first wife, and we'll have a beautiful baby boy. And once you have your daughter with Karlheinz, they shall marry, and we'll finally be family. If it's not my right by birth then I will make it my right through marriage."

"That, I have no doubts of," Beatrix showed off an elegant smile, squeezing her friend's hands, "But what of our invitation? If you don't go then—"

"I'll go. Nothing could keep me from it," she took the letter again, glancing it over, "Perhaps I'll have my fun with this."

"Henrietta—"

"I'll be on my best behavior Beatrix, I promise you. But perhaps I can use Sir Sampson's infatuation to my advantage."

"Oh?"

A sly smile spread across Henrietta's lips, "I believe the term is—friends in high places?"

Afternoon tea was served on one of the private balconies of Sakamaki castle that overlooked the gardens down below.

"Charles was telling me of Japan. Apparently the cherry blossoms are in bloom."

"That sounds lovely," Beatrix said politely, bringing the teacup up to her lips.

"I was telling Charles we could all make a trip of it one day. I've heard so many stories I'd quite like to visit one day. Have you ever been, Beatrix?"

"I'm afraid I've only ever been to England, as it's where my father conducts most of his business."

"Do you not sell to Japan?"

"From what I understand the Japanese aren't so receptive to outside influence," Beatrix told him.

"I see. How curious," Karlheinz continued on, "I always thought tea to be a rather universal product."

"Each leaf is unique," Beatrix explained humbly, "And each more temperamental than the next. Anything can cause the slightest of change, from the soil in which they're grown, to the water in which they're boiled."

"How absolutely fascinating…"

Henrietta listened to Karlheinz and Beatrix go on and on about the most boring of things, silently eating some cakes, and trying to make sure Sampson kept his feet to himself.

The gentleman was trying to lift her skirt under the table. Not that she was going to say anything. Beatrix was finally getting to talk to Karlheinz on a more intimate level, and with the young prince's head no longer wrapped around some heathen human spawn, there was finally room for Beatrix. And Henrietta wouldn't be the one to ruin it.

She understood the scarcity of opportunity all too well.

Conversation seemed to pick up between the two of them, Henrietta and Sampson chipping in every so often, but it became quite clear that Beatrix and Karlheinz had quickly entered their own little world.

It became especially obvious, when the two decided to head down into the gardens, so that they could admire the sunrise from there.

"Henrietta, Sampson? Won't you join us?" Karlheinz asked, practically beaming, grinning from ear to ear as he helped Beatrix stand.

Both Sampson and Henrietta shared a glance, upon which Henrietta sighed first. "My legs are so dreadfully tired. And these strawberries are delicious. I think I'd much rather stay here."

"Very well," Karlheinz nodded, "Sampson, then?"

"I don't think it'd suit well to leave the lady all alone like this. Besides, we'll have a better view of the sunrise from here."

Neither Beatrix nor Karlheinz seemed to argue it, the two of them excusing themselves from the balcony, and leaving Henrietta to face Sampson alone.

Sampson took a single sip of sparkling water, before choosing to speak.

"Will you be having the chicken or the fish?"

She scrunched up her features, "I beg your pardon?"

"For their wedding. Chicken or fish?"

She rolled her eyes, "You seem rather confident in it."

"Beatrix is a beautiful woman," Sampson reasoned, "He'd be a fool to let her go."

"Because beauty is all that matters in a woman," Henrietta clarified. "But I will agree. He's a fool if he lets her go."

"Believe me," Sampson sighed, "He has no intention to. Do you have any idea how long it took him to write the letter inviting you here?"

Henrietta laughed, taking a sip of her drink, "The letter which you so gracefully commandeered?"

"Were you impressed with my vocabulary?"

"Repulsed, actually—"

"I thought you'd might appreciate it, after Karlheinz's—"

"Endless strings of poetic nonsense?" She rolled her eyes, "What was it? An honor so humbly bestowed upon me—"

"That was my influence, I will admit." Sampson grinned, filling up his glass, "A little flair never hurts."

"Ah," Henrietta hummed, allowing him to fill up her glass, "So you're a poet now as well."

"A jack of all trades," he said.

"Mmm," she agreed, "But master of none, I'm afraid."

A sly smile spread across his face. "Can we not have a simple conversation between us?"

"Are we not conversing at this very moment?" Henrietta countered.

Sampson chuckled, taking a sip of his drink, the sound a low, vibrating rumble in his throat that seemed to catch Henrietta's attention. If he weren't already married, she would have accepted his proposition in a heartbeat. The only name that rung above Sampson was Sakamaki.

But fate was not so kind.

"Tell me something about yourself, Henrietta." He said suddenly, not so much as a suggestion, but rather in a telling fashion, the way men with power were want to do.

She hummed, thinking, before folding her hands over themselves, leaning in flirtatiously across the table, "Whatever would you like to know, Sir Sampson?"

He seemed to think about that for a moment, bringing a hand up to his chin, "Do you prefer cats, or dogs?"

"Dogs," she responded, almost on reflex.

Sampson lifted a brow in surprise, leaning in with genuine interest, "I would have assumed cats. I'd have bet good money on that."

She rolled her eyes, "You'd have lost money. Men like you always think they understand everything."

"Then," he motioned with his hands, "Enlighten me."

Henreitta sighed, not really wanting to talk, but knowing there would be no other way to pass the time, until Beatrix returned with Karlheinz.

"Cats are their own creatures. You can't get them to do anything. A dog, at the very least, is obedient and loyal."

Sampson nodded, somewhat slowly, resting his chin in his palms. "Fascinating. Loyalty truly is everything."

"It's all anyone has," Henrietta corrected, "Beyond that there is nothing."

"Such heavy words," he mused.

"Forgive me for weighing down our conversation," she smiled, her tone playful, in a way that was as fake as the gems the peasantry wore around their necks.

"Do you not laugh?" Sampson asked, with as much curiosity as he'd given the first question.

"Quite often," she said truthfully, "Mostly at the incompetence of servants."

"You berate the help?"

"Only when they irritate me."

"And," Sampson continued, "Are you irritated often?"

"I'm irritated now."

"I see," Sampson nodded seriously, taking a strawberry, and popping the entire thing into his mouth, "Will you laugh at me then?"

She shrugged, "You've done nothing to provide me with amusement."

"Is that you giving me permission to try and amuse you?" He asked in earnest.

She waved her hand tiredly, giving another slight shrug of her shoulder, "Do as you will."

"Well then," Sampson grinned, "In that case, I do have a story I think you'll find amusing. There was a formal gathering here the other day. Viboras, Demons and the like. My own mother as well of course—"

"I'm already so dreadfully bored," Henrietta sighed—

"Cordelia was there too. She made quite the scene."

Henrietta made a disapproving sound, rolling her eyes and taking a bite of pastry, "That brat is always causing a scene—"

"The king had her removed." Sampson smirked, eyeing her to watch her reaction.

Henrietta did perk up at the thought, turning to him for further explanation, "Removed?"

"Escorted out by yours truly~"

Henrietta chuckled, struggling to keep it from becoming a full-fledged cackle, shaking her head and clicking her tongue, "Serves her right. Bloody first born—"

"Just as I thought—"

"What?" She snapped at him, irked that he'd cut off her sentence yet again.

"You have a beautiful laugh."

There was something about the way he said it. Henrietta didn't believe it. Wouldn't, because she was smarter than that. But the way he'd said it…it'd almost sounded…honest.

It was enough to make her stop, Henrietta looking at him with contempt in her eyes, "If you're trying to charm me—"

"I've long since given up on such a thing," Sampson said, "I'm simply stating my own observations."

Awkward laughter came from below, capturing both Sampson and Henrietta's attention, Karlheinz making a fool of himself down in the gardens, Beatrix trying to quell her laughter by hiding behind her hand.

Henrietta sighed, "They're so dreadfully frustrating."

"A unique pair indeed," Sampson said, "Even still, I can hear wedding bells."

Henrietta scoffed, reaching for a strawberry, and taking an indulgent bite, "He'd be crazy not to marry her. The sooner the better."

"And for the two of us? Would sooner be better?"

She rolled her eyes, "Again you insist on the exact same thing."

"I'm afraid I must."

"I thought you'd given up on such a thing,"

"Perhaps I lied a bit."

"A deplorable trait, truly."

"I'm merely a determined man."

Henrietta sighed, reaching for another strawberry, a tinge of lament in her eyes, "Yes. That, you most certainly are."

Sampson leaned forward, intrigued by her answer, "My Lady?"

She seemed lost in thought, twirling the strawberry in her hands, "What is it called when neither man wins in a duel? A draw?"

"Precisely."

She looked up at him, "Then I propose a draw."

Sampson crossed his legs, folding his hands over his knees, "Your terms?"

"I'll find you a suitable second wife," she proposed, "And you find me a husband in want of a first wife. We both end up married, and we can stop with this bickering nonsense."

Sampson scoffed, uncrossing his legs, "If it were only a wife I were looking for then perhaps I might agree," he stood up, moving to take the seat closer to her.

Henrietta crinkled her features, "If not a wife then what more could you want?"

"You, naturally."

Her crinkled confusion become a scowl, "You can't have me—"

"I can. By force, if necessary—"

"You wouldn't dare. You realize Beatrix's position do you not? If you lay a single, disgusting, entitled finger on me—"

She stopped, because Sampson wasn't interrupting, wasn't saying anything, actually just looking at her with wide eyes that didn't suit a man like him. Why was it that simply having him watch her seemed to be enough to make her falter?

"Why are you looking at me like that." She spat out dryly.

Sampson cocked his head pensively, as if he were lost in a daydream, "The way you bare your fangs when you're upset," he said, "It's truly enchanting…"

She stiffened, feeling a strange lump in her throat, so she scoffed it away, "Enchanting? Don't take me for a fool," she wasn't sure where to look, "Ladies—ladies don't show their fangs—"

"May I counter your offer?" He said suddenly, leaning into her.

She swallowed, stiffening all the more, "You may."

"You become my second wife. You bear me my first born. Surely you know that's the quickest way to inherit power."

Henrietta inhaled sharply, "You want an heir." She only seemed to realize it as she said it. Well, at the very least, it made more since than him wanting her, specifically.

"I want you," Sampson corrected, "But it seems you're not interested in matters of the heart."

She scoffed, "Matters of the heart—"

"Amelia has never mattered to me," Sampson insisted, "You're unlike another other woman I've ever met. You speak your mind and yet you hold loyalty at the highest regard. You bare your fangs, and speak out of turn. Everything you do seems to set me on edge and when all is said and done I think I might actually hate you—"

"Are you—"

"I cannot make you the first wife," Sampson continued, taking her hand, and pressing his lips to the back of her palm, "But I could make you the first woman I've ever loved."

Electric shocks seemed to jolt through her, the feeling so foreign and unnatural that it was enough to make her stand, if only to get further away from him. With an awkward clear of her throat, she made her way to the balcony, leaning against the railing. Sampson followed her, standing right at her side. She figured he might do so, but part of her had hoped he'd stay at the table.

"You're trying to play me for a fool," she said quietly.

"I don't think I could if I tried," Sampson offered.

"Men like you don't love," she looked up at him, eyes searching his face, "Vampires…"

Wind tugged at their clothes, Henrietta's hair slowly rolling down her shoulder.

"Perhaps they don't," Sampson's voice was a hushed whisper, nearly carried off by the wind, but it didn't quite seem to matter int hat moment, because he was already leaning in, meeting Henrietta in a soft brushing of their lips.

Neither pulled away until another gentle breeze seemed to roll by, Henrietta averting her gaze, choosing to look out into the gardens instead. Sampson leaned against her, but only just.

"Will you return that one as well?" He asked, resting his arms against the railing, glancing at her briefly before he too began gazing out into the garden.

It was silent for a long while, and for a moment Sampson thought he might ignore her question entirely. But then she spoke up, drawing his attention to her face.

"No," she sounded lost, choosing to not look at him, but rather out at the garden below, "I think I will keep just this one."

The sun began to peek out from the horizon, spilling out over the garden, seeming to touch every inch of space though there was hardly any light to begin with. And for some reason, Sampson felt it would be fine if he chose to lean in just a tad bit more.

"I'm glad to hear it."

A/N: woops this took a long time to update lol.